24 artists have been selected in a competition to illustrate a new edition of The Selected Adventures and Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes

Illustration by � Andrew Pinder 2018 from The Folio Society and House of Illustration Book Illustration Competition 2018 for Arthur Conan Doyle�s The Selected Adventures and Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes.

Sherlock Holmes is one of the most instantly recognisable literary figures in history. While Arthur Conan Doyle didn’t himself dress Holmes in the now characteristic deerstalker, pipe and sweeping coat, this image remains as synonymous with the detective as 221B Baker Street.

Perhaps a new image is to be born, as illustrators compete to create the artwork for a new book.

Every year The Folio Society and House of Illustration in Kings Cross team up for the Book Illustration Competition, in which hundreds compete for the honour of illustrating a Folio Society edition of a classic tale. This year, it is The Selected Adventures and Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes.

The longlist has been announced for the prize, with 24 artists selected. The winner receives a £5,000 commission from The Folio Society to illustrate the new book, while five other shortlisted entrants receive £500.

The Folio Society art director Sheri Gee and House of Illustration director Colin McKenzie picked the initial list of talent from 450 entrants.

“We had a wonderful response to the competition this year with almost twice the number of entries, clearly reflecting the enduring and international popularity of Sherlock Holmes,” says McKenzie. “We were particularly pleased by the large number of student applications and the creativity and ingenuity of so many of the illustrations. As a result we have a very strong longlist.”

More than 35 per cent of entries came from students and, in line with their ambition to nurture new talent, the judging panel make sure that students form a part of the shortlist.

Helping McKenzie and Gee to decide the shortlist and winner are Holmes expert Helen Dorey, publishing director of The Folio Society Tom Walker, House of Illustration curator Olivia Ahmad and last year’s winner Darya Shnykina, who won the chance to illustrate Mansfield Park.

The People’s Choice award gives you the chance to vote for your favourite from the longlist. The winning artist and one voting member of the public will receive £100 worth of books from The Folio Society.

The awards ceremony will be held at House of Illustration on February 20.

House of Illustration in Kings Cross was founded by Sir Quentin Blake in 2014. It is the only public gallery in the UK dedicated to exhibition illustration and graphic arts.

foliosociety.com

Illustration by � Andy Potts 2018 from The Folio Society and House of Illustration Book Illustration Competition 2018 for Arthur Conan Doyle?s The Selected Adventures and Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes.

houseofillustration.org.uk

Vote for the People’s Choice at competitions.houseofillustration.org.uk/book-illustration-competition-2018/peoples-choice-award/